The position of the Arab and Muslim world was likewise difficult to gauge. While Syrian President Bashar Assad hailed the deal as a “great victory” (for whom exactly?), Saudi sources (editor of Asharq Al-Awsat) bashed the deal as opening the gates of evil in the ME. According to the New York Times, alarm was registered in rival power Saudi Arabia as the freshly-forged deal added a “new, unpredictable factor” to an already volatile Middle East – a factor other regional actors are also bound to be impacted by.